My First FJ40. What Should I Do First? (1 Viewer)

[TigertreeJosh]

Purty!

Note: don't mess with your actual wiring without isolating the battery... Disconnect the battery cables.

I can't see anything obvious in pic1... Not sure why the wires and the heat sleeve are just laying there... Or what they are laying on...

Pic2... The blue wire in the voltage regulator (VR) is not typically used... But, the VR connector is not like any I've seen before... The wires protruding from the bottom of that connector look like they could be charred... Have a look,and see if the insulation is melted or burned. The two connectors below there are the rear harness connectors, I think... Hard to tell. Note: don't mess with your actual wiring without isolating the battery... Disconnect the battery cables.

Pic3...thru... End... Any idea what all that creative wiring is all about? I would trace it and see what it is supposed to do... It's really hard to tell you what to do, but from what I can see, MY approach would be to disconnect it until you resolve your issues. You can always go back and wire it correctly later. Note: don't mess with your actual wiring without isolating the battery... Disconnect the battery cables.

Edit: it looks like the ring terminal, behind the fuse box bolt is grounding something... The other stuff is probably hot... Tapped off of the fuse box... But what's it all for?

What is that dark rectangular thing and is it really burnt?

Edit: where does that big black wire bundle go in your last picture? It looks like it goes to the floor and then toward the back... The orange wire has a male spade, is there a single female lurking in the shadows?

Alright if I can convince the little one to play outside while I play with my truck I will try and get to this again after dinner. In the meantime can I ask if that shot of your tach in your thread about your new rig is something that I am missing or something you added? I feel like I need to get to 4th by the time I am going maybe 30 MPH or so and with no real guidance other than a truck that needs a tune up I have never driven I don't know how much I trust my feeling so some guidance would be great. Super jealous of yours! It looks beautiful!

 

[Solace in Solitude]

Alright if I can convince the little one to play outside while I play with my truck I will try and get to this again after dinner. In the meantime can I ask if that shot of your tach in your thread about your new rig is something that I am missing or something you added? I feel like I need to get to 4th by the time I am going maybe 30 MPH or so and with no real guidance other than a truck that needs a tune up I have never driven I don't know how much I trust my feeling so some guidance would be great. Super jealous of yours! It looks beautiful!

Thanks Josh!!

I added the tach and vacuum gauge, so I could better monitor my engine as well as my driving.

I generally go to 4th between 30 and 35... A bit higher when merging into traffic... But, not much.

For several weeks, I shifted to 5th at 50... But, I finally remembered that I have a 4-speed.

My point... It's geared for off-road and not for the freeway... The right lane is your new home.

 

[TigertreeJosh]

@pngunme that cluster that looks like it's going to the back is actually not connected to anything. Also, just in case it could possible be an issue, the wires that should connect the license place light are not connected at the moment.

I discovered while letting my 2 year old pretend to drive and I was playing with the 4 wheel shifter was actually in 4High and not 2High. I guess after the delivery guy dropped it off and "took it out of 4 wheel drive" I just never had the mind to look into it as I wouldn't be needing it at the moment.

 

[Solace in Solitude]

So, the creative wiring, by the fuse box, isn't currently connected to anything... But, there's a black ground, a red (hot?) and an orange... Black and orange go to the white plug... Where does the red go?

What is the wire, with the orange wire nut, tapped into on the fuse box?

I would Clean that up by disconnecting that wiring and taping up any bare wires.... Again... Disconnect your battery first.

And... what's that black rectangle for and is it connected to something? Maybe the PO had a radio under the driver's seat. You can probably remove it too... But, it's difficult to know from here.

The license light has two wires... A ground (white-black) and a taillight (green)... Make sure that green wire is not shorting against metal somewhere.

I'm willing to keep trying, but it might take a while... Up to you.

Your best approach, might be to clean up the ugly stuff, search for the short and, if that doesn't fix your signals, or at least stop popping fuses, find a MUDder in your area who can help you work this out in person.

I haven't been to OH in a very long time... Are you near any MUDders in this clubhouse? My First FJ40. What Should I Do First?

You could post a thread in the clubhouse link and see where that takes you.

Did you check the harness wiring below the voltage regulator?

 

[TigertreeJosh]

Also is taking the top of as straightforward as it seems? Someone is graciously giving me a soft top. As backwards as it seems to swap out for the soft top for winter, I don't see me driving it much in the winter save for weird Indian summer days. And since I am just about an inch shy of garage clearance I am pretty sure I can make it with the soft top. So I can work on interior and cosmetic stuff in the garage over the winter. It looks like there should be bolts all the way around the perimeter but I just have maybe 5-6 random ones and then the ones just north of the windshield. Do I take
It off in one piece or take the top off first and then the rest of it?

 

[tlc762]

You can take the top off either way- either remove the fiberglass top and drip rail part first, then the sides and doors or take the doors off then remove the rest as one piece. It depends on how much help you have to lift the top off the truck and where you want to store it.
HTH,
Will

 

[TigertreeJosh]

Well I am having some (I hope just) idling issues. The first couple of days I felt like it would slowly put put put and die at lights. Today on my way into work and cruising around with another cruiser owner I had check it out for me it did great. No idling issues at all. So I felt like it probably just had some stale gas that worked its way out and it was actually in good shape. My way home from work today was a different story. Every time I took my foot off the gas for more than a couple seconds it would die. At lights I literally had to hold my foot on the break and my heel a little on the gas. How do I adjust the idle and any other ideas?

 

[onemanarmy]

I'd take the carb apart and check for build up and worn out gaskets. Also, the low and erratic idle is often caused by vacuum leaks. The base of the carb is a common vacuum leak spot if it is all original.

 

[70fj40]

Just a suggestion here but since you are installing a soft top anyway. I would take the hard top off in pieces. It will be easier to store that way and will give you the opportunity to fix any bad spots and repaint if necessary.

 

[Solace in Solitude]

Well I am having some (I hope just) idling issues. The first couple of days I felt like it would slowly put put put and die at lights. Today on my way into work and cruising around with another cruiser owner I had check it out for me it did great. No idling issues at all. So I felt like it probably just had some stale gas that worked its way out and it was actually in good shape. My way home from work today was a different story. Every time I took my foot off the gas for more than a couple seconds it would die. At lights I literally had to hold my foot on the break and my heel a little on the gas. How do I adjust the idle and any other ideas?

Read this thread... It has some good info relating to carb issues, vacuum issues, etc.... Pay particular attention to @Pin_Head 's okie rebuild instructions, in post# 19. I would do an okie rebuild and see if it helps... If it does, you should seriously consider a carb rebuild, if it recurs. Carb rebuild - general rule of thumb

 

[TigertreeJosh]

Yes, to many people's dismay I am going to do a rattle can job on it (the paint is worse in person than on photos. It's house paint with a brush) with plans to get it stripped and painted properly in a year or two. So I plan on taking the top off in pieces for painting reasons regardless.

I have been slowly working on the frame and underbelly with a gel rust inhibitor getting the surface rust off. No rot anywhere, it's super solid. Then I am doing a self etching primer and undercoat.

I have a couple of mechanic friends coming over tomorrow to help diagnose the dying issue. A friend in town with a 78 said he had the same issue after his first fully tank, that scale had built up inside the tank and was continuously clogging the filter and he ultimately just swapped the tank. So we'll start by removing the filter tomorrow and looking for evidence of that and hopefully replacing it anyway if I can find one locally. Also going to play with the idle speeds. I would say it has been consistently low and not erratic.

Also going to pull the wiper motor tomorrow and tape off all those wires, hoping the short is hidden somewhere in that side of the circuit as the wiring to the signals looks good but will get to take a closer look. Saw that thread on rebuilding the wiper motors so I am going to look into doing that or sending it out to be done unless anyone has a hot tip on a cheap one that is ready to go.

 

[cruiserkev]

Yes, to many people's dismay I am going to do a rattle can job on it (the paint is worse in person than on photos. It's house paint with a brush) with plans to get it stripped and painted properly in a year or two. So I plan on taking the top off in pieces for painting reasons regardless. .

House paint on a cruiser? Sad what previous owners do to these vehicles. When I painted my 40 I found it was much easier to paint it in sections to avoid overspray. Interior was in good shape so I just removed the hood, bezel, doors, top etc.. and sprayed them individually over a 3 day period. I did 4 to 5 thick coats letting each section dry for 10 minutes or so between spraying . I ended up using 12 cans of green on the body and 5 cans of metallic gray for the wheels, top and bezel. A good coat of clear on everything is nice afterwards but not mandatory, I skipped it on mine and don't have very many scratches yet. Take your time masking and sanding for best results. Good luck!

 

[FineWynsFJ40]

For several weeks, I shifted to 5th at 50... But, I finally remembered that I have a 4-speed.

Yeah, I've done this too...

I take my hard top off as one piece. Unbolt the sides, the six up front on the windshield, then use a hoist I designed and built myself that hooks in four places to lift it straight up, then drive the truck out from under it. I then lower it on to a cart I made that's got casters so I can wheel it around my barn to get it out of the way. I can take pics if you'd like next time I do it.

Brian

 

[sggoat]

Yeah the tire thing is just stressing me out so bad because it really needs it pretty desperately to be road worthy so it's a decision I have to make basically immediately. I just hate to sink $500-$600 into tires just to get the know the truck when I have an idea of where I want it to be but you are right that I have no idea what other lift/suspension bits I would need. Anyone know what the biggest wheel/tire swap I could do without doing anything else would be?

Are the tires worn out?--from the pics, they don't look that bad at all. Please don't rush into "big tires and big lift" , unless your plans are for heavy wheeling that requires such.(even if you plan this, you need to do the suspension due-diligence thing BEFORE the wheel/tires-or at least as a part of--) Get the rig running properly and reliably before the accessories

 

[sggoat]

Some say its easy, some can never get it to run right again...there are DIY writeups here and on youtube.

Vacuum hoses and filters are cake.

It IS easy! Watch PinHead's vids, then do it yourself---Aisan carbs are not that hard to rebuild--plus you will have done it yourself-no better reason than that!

 

[TigertreeJosh]

To the point on the tires. Yes they were BAD. Not great tread but really really bad dry rot on the sidewalls. Like stick a couple of quarters in them sized cracks.
Luckily the garage I took it too just took in a jeep with almost new tires in the size I wanted I got them for a couple hundred bucks. So those will do until next summer when I have a better idea of what I really want and can invest more.

I wish I had space to rack and/or leave
my top together but I am fighting a battle to explain why I even want to park this in the garage instead of my "good" car so at this point that road probably isn't worth going down.

Trying the Okie tonight and looking for leaks as best I can and will go from there. Wish me luck!

 

[TigertreeJosh]

Also can you guys let me know what is going on here? It looks like I have a Facet fuel pump installed so not sure what that does to my trouble shooting tonight but more mysterious is the old fuel pump is still there but not hooked up aaaaand seems to be a fuel pump for a 79> truck.

 

[TigertreeJosh]

We made a lot of headway tonight. Ran some carb cleaner through it and played with the idle screw and that seemed to smooth things out a bit. Oh that and a couple of brittle hoses that had literally just fallen off... So we got everything back on and zip tied on until I can get replacements.

The electrical problem is stiller rearing it's head in weird ways. We disconnected the wiper motor and it stopped blowing fuses, however we could not get the motor to show that it was getting power when connected. Anyway, two of the guys that were helping out actually know what they are talking about and I don't and they assure me they are on the right track and will get it sorted.

Still confused about my fuel pump set up. In particular there are two fuel filters hooked up at the moment, the original filter and that larger one you can see just behind the Facet pump. Anyone know if this is standard for that setup?

Ordering a healthy list of parts tonight. Replacing any of the brittle hoses and belts, original fuel filter, exhaust manifold gasket...

At a minimum I am back to road worthiness with a better understanding of my engine than I had before tonight and I think I have a solid plan to start getting things buttoned up for real.